Here’s the 411 On Souping, The New And Improved Juicing

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Before you go and hop on the next dieting craze, you might want to know what you’re getting yourself into. Juicing and souping are fundamentally very different. Juicing extracts the juice from fresh fruits and vegetables by spitting out the pulp (the peel or outer layer). The final product may be lacking in vitamins, minerals and fiber compared to produce in whole form. Souping, on the other hand, makes use of the whole vegetable so that you’re not compromising any of the nutrients that keep you energized and satisfied. Plus, you’re not wasting any of the pulp. Souping is all about keeping the integrity of the entire vegetable.

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A study by the American College of Cardiology says that “juicing is primarily reserved for situations when daily intake of vegetables and fruits is inadequate.” In other words, it’s meant to be a supplement rather than your sole source of nutrients.

Now, there are two ways you could look at souping. You can look at it as a detox, where you’d only drink the soup and nothing else for an allotted period of time. Then, there’s using soup as a supplement, which is the healthier way to go. Going on a cleanse or a detox isn’t sustainable and it could just lead to extreme hunger, which could lead to overeating and binging later on.

Souping can be done hot or cold, which makes it perfect for your diet all year round. Compared to juicing, above all, it’s a more satisfying way to infuse your body with a ton of easy-to-digest nutrients and it’s more economical. It feels more like an actual meal than juice does since spices, herbs and broth are involved.

Companies like Züpa Noma make superfood soups out of whole, ripe vegetables that are all certified organic. Their goal is to use the produce from “seed to skin” so that you can have all of the uncompromised vitamins and fiber. The soup should hit somewhere in the middle consistency wise. It should be easily drinkable, but filling enough to make the consumer feel like he or she’s had a meal. A few examples of flavor combinations from Züpa’s drinkable soups are yellow pepper turmeric, tomatillo kale jalapeño, carrot coconut lime, beet orange basil, tomato gazpacho and cucumber avocado.

Bottom line: detoxing might seem like a great idea, but the truth is your body already has everything it needs to get rid of toxins. That’s what your liver and kidneys are for. These organs help to filter out the majority of harmful substances that we eat and drink. Basically, you’re naturally a cleansing machine, so detoxing isn’t necessarily helping you unless it gives you some psychological clarity. If you want to get on board with souping, just remember to incorporate it into your already existing routine, instead of going cold turkey with it.